


School Daze

by Dextrousleftie



Category: Original Work
Genre: Gay Romance, High School, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-04-16
Updated: 2015-11-30
Packaged: 2018-01-19 14:40:20
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 11,825
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1473466
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dextrousleftie/pseuds/Dextrousleftie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jerome Hayden's new classmate is a walking wet dream come to life. Too bad that he's also completely straight, right? Or is he...?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Jerome Hayden frowned down at his notebook. He hated English. It was the only class he was taking that wasn't an AP class, and he still struggled to maintain an A. He wished that conjugating verbs was as easy for him as Algebraic formulas were. He had to keep his grades up if he wanted to get a college scholarship, but sometimes reading things like Ethan Frome made him wish heartily that he could skip taking English classes altogether. 

He glanced up as their teacher entered the classroom. She walked to the front of the class and greeted them all. "Good morning, class," she said. "We've got a new student joining us today," she added, nodding at the door. "Class, this is Tyler Radisson. Please say hello to him."

Jerome's eyes widened a bit behind the lenses of his glasses as the new student strolled over to the teacher's desk. Tyler Radisson was dressed in a battered denim jacket, over a t-shirt with the name of an 80's heavy metal band on the front. The material stretched over what looked like an impressive set of lean muscles. The black pants he was wearing, with a studded leather belt, seemed to fit his legs like a second skin. Worn, square-toed boots laced up nearly to his knees. Stainless-steel gauges winked in his ears, under a fall of curly brown-black hair that fell halfway to his shoulders. 

Rich, dark-brown eyes, rimmed by lashes so dark that it looked like he was wearing eyeliner, studied the class. His face, all bones and angles under pale skin, turned from side-to-side as he took them all in. "Hey," he said laconically, lifting a hand. Jerome noticed that his fingernails were painted black. 

Jerome swallowed heavily. His fingers tightened on the pencil he was holding in his hand. Dear God, his own personal fantasy had just strolled into his classroom! Jerome might be a geeky nerd himself, but in his dreams he'd always fantasized about a rocker god appearing in his life and sweeping him off his feet. That fantasy had never changed, not since poor Jerome had realized that he was gay back when he was in the 8th grade. Man, to have what amounted to a wet dream in one of his classes....

The rest of the class were murmuring greetings to the new student. The teacher remarked: "Why don't you take a seat, Tyler? There's an empty one over there," and she pointed to the empty desk next to Jerome's!  
He nodded and strolled over toward Jerome, whose breath caught in his throat as Tyler sank down loosely into the chair and glanced over at him. 

"Hey," he said to Jerome.

"Hi," he croaked.

"I'm Tyler," his fantasy said. 

"Jerome," he replied breathlessly. 

Tyler's lip curled slightly. "Jerome? That's an old man's name," he sneered.

Jerome felt his face turn brick-red in shame and hurt. But before he could react, Tyler tipped his head to the side and continued: "I think I'll call you 'Jer' instead," he mused thoughtfully.

Jer? He found the heat in his cheeks turning into a blush. "Umm..." he began uncertainly.

"You can call me Ty," Tyler added. 

"O-Okay," he stuttered.

Before Tyler could say anything else, their teacher spoke. "Okay, guys, I asked you to read chapters five and six of Ethan Frome last night. Let's have a discussion about what you read."

Jerome turned his attention to her reluctantly. While he'd much rather have just spent the entire hour staring at the new student, he had to maintain his grade point average. But he was acutely aware of Tyler lounging back in his chair, not participating in the conversation because he hadn't read the chapters yet. Oh, man, was it warm in here or was it just him?

 

Jerome was both glad and unhappy when the bell rang. He got up, glancing over at his new neighbor. Tyler rose lithely to his feet, grabbing the battered backpack sitting next to his feet. "See ya later, Jer," he said casually, before strolling up to the front to talk to the teacher.

Jerome gathered up his own backpack and left the classroom. He didn't want to be late for Chemistry class. He cast a last wistful glance over his shoulder as he scurried out of his English class, and hurried away down the hallway. 

 

Jerome walked into the Chemistry lab, waving at several of his friends. They waved back as he went over to his station, where they were going to start a new experiment today. He was really looking forward to that. He was working by himself for now; his old lab partner had moved away about a month ago, and since the rest of the class was already paired up there was nobody to replace him. 

The teacher came into the lab, with someone beside and slightly behind him. "Guys, I know that you're all looking forward to the new experiment we're starting today," he said. "Jerome, you'll be happy to know that you'll finally have a new lab partner. This is a new student who just arrived today. Tyler Radisson, this is Jerome Hayden. He'll be your lab partner."

Jerome's jaw headed for the floor as Tyler sauntered out from behind the teacher. "We've already met," he commented to the teacher. "He's in my English class, too."

"Ah, I see. Well, go over there and Jerome will help you get settled in." the Chemistry teacher waved a hand at the stunned Jerome.

"Sure," Tyler sauntered over to him. "Hey, Jer. How's it going?" he asked with a sardonic smile. 

He found his voice at last. "YOU'RE in this class?!" he blurted out in disbelief, then turned brick-red again at how rude he sounded.

"Guess so," Tyler replied casually, leaning against the edge of the lab station. 

Jerome made a nervous gesture with his hands. "And you...you can..." he began helplessly.

Tyler's lips lifted at one corner. "Yes, I can," he said mockingly. "I'm not just a pretty face, Jer. I have a pretty big brain too."

"Oh," he said dumbly, because his heart was pounding in his chest like a hammer. Tyler really WAS his perfect man come to glorious life right in front of him...Man, oh, man, this might be a really bad thing. Especially if Tyler ever figured out that he was gay, and drooling all over him. He really didn't want to get the crap beat out of him by his perfect wet dream...

The teacher was calling them to start the experiment. Tyler pulled out his Chemistry textbook. "Show me what to do," he said to Jerome.

"Okay," he replied, and tried to put all of his attention on what they were doing for class. 

 

He got so good at it that he almost forgot who he was doing his Chemistry experiment with. That is, until their hands brushed as they both reached for the same beaker. Jerome started and blushed, and would have dropped the beaker if Tyler hadn't taken it from him. He turned away, breathing heavily, to try to get himself back under control. This was awful! His hands were shaking, and his mouth was dry as the Sahara. God, why did he have to be gay? Wasn't it bad enough that he was a homely nerd who attracted bullies like flies? Really, whatever deity or power ran the universe really seemed to have a hate-on for him!

"You okay, Jer?" he heard Tyler say.

"Uh, yes," he said, turning back around. "Sorry about that."

"No problem. Come on, let's finish this up before the bell rings," Tyler replied. 

His casual, easy attitude helped Jerome pull himself back together. "Sure," he said, and stepped back to the station so that they could finish the chemistry experiment together.

 

Jerome exited the school five hours later, feeling wrung out. Much to his shock and chagrin, Tyler had lazily walked into three more of his AP classes after leaving the Chemistry lab. He'd only had peace in his AP History class; in Calculus, Biology, and Trigonometry Tyler had been introduced to the class as a new student, and he'd always acknowledged Jerome with a lift of the hand and a nod. The other students had all looked either surprised or outright shocked at Tyler's appearance among them; Jerome could sympathize. He was still coming to terms with the fact that someone who looked like Tyler was apparently just a nerd in a really, REALLY good disguise. 

He moved quickly, on his way to the room where the Chess Club met after school. He was also in the Biology and Chemistry Clubs, but those only met twice a week. He jumped and whirled around when a hand touched his shoulder, finding himself face-to-face with Tyler. "Sorry to startle you," he remarked. "But I was wondering if you know a good place to hang out after school?"

"Oh, I'm on my way to a Chess Club meeting," Jerome said hurriedly. 

"Could you skip it today? I don't know anybody else around here. I'd like to hang around with somebody that I sort of know for awhile. Please? I'll buy you a drink," Tyler said.

Jerome hesitated, but frankly the allure of the Chess Club wasn't as strong as the prospect of being able to spend more time with Tyler. "We could do that," he said aloud. "There's a diner downtown. They have a soda fountain."

"Wow, a soda fountain," Tyler said mockingly, though he was smiling slightly. "Lead on, MacDuff."

Jerome led the way down the sidewalk, and Tyler fell into step next to him. They said nothing at first; Tyler had turned his face up to the sunlight, and was obviously enjoying its warmth. And Jerome was too nervous to be able to think of any conversational gambits. Finally he managed to come up with one. "Uh, where did you move here from?" he asked.

Tyler's head tilted down, and his rich brown eyes met Jerome's. "California," he said succinctly. 

"Oh." Jerome thought about that far-away state, a place that seemed rather exotic to him. "You're used to the heat and sun, then," he said slowly. 

"Yeah. Not looking forward to winter here," Tyler agreed. "If my dad hadn't needed to move here for work..."

"What does he do?" Jerome asked curiously.

"He's a doctor," Tyler replied, making him blink in surprise. "He was offered a job at University Hospitals of Cleveland, and he decided to buy a house here because it's only a forty-minute drive to work but this is a much smaller town. He didn't want to live in Cleveland itself. I think he's always sort of wanted to live in Suburbia."

"Why?!" Jerome blurted out, then blushed in embarrassment.

Tyler's lips quirked. "I have no idea," he replied dryly. "I guess he thinks that living in the suburbs would help me to be more normal. I hate to tell him this, but he's left it far too late for that."


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Tyler discovers Jerome's big secret...

Looking him over, Jerome could only agree to this statement silently. "Are you...going to college?" he asked hesitantly. "After high school?"

"Sure. I think Dad's afraid I'll try to be a musician or something, but I can't carry a tune in a bucket OR play a musical instrument to save myself. I still love music, though. Especially Heavy Metal of any kind. Though my favorite of all time is the hair bands of the 80's. What about you, Jer? Do you like music?"

"Sure," he said. "I listen to the radio in my room when I study..."

Tyler snorted. "Top 40's crap," he said sardonically. "The same popular song played a hundred times a day," his voice held a distinct sneer.

Jerome had to admit that he was right about popular songs being played to death on the radio. "I also listen to NPR," he remarked. "Classical music and stuff."

To his surprise, Tyler didn't sneer at this statement. "I like Classical music," he said, much to Jerome's further shock. "Those composers were the rock stars of their day, you know. They even had groupies and everything."

He'd never thought about it that way, but Tyler was right. "If you're not going to be a musician," he began curiously, "What are you going to college to be?"

"I thought maybe a civil engineer," Tyler mused. "But I'm still not quite sure. I'll keep looking around until I decide. What about you?"

"I think I want to be a biochemist," Jerome said tentatively.

"Cool. I think my dad hopes that I'll be a doctor like him, but that's not for me. I'm not interested in medicine. Though I imagine he'll be happy when I tell him I'm not starting a band, and that I'm going to college."

"I'll bet," Jerome replied, then felt awkward. 

Tyler grinned lazily. "My dad underestimates me," he mused. "Just like you did when you first saw me. Just because I dress like this doesn't mean that I can't be smart."

"No. But usually when a guy dresses like you do, he's a bad boy or a cool kid. Not a nerd like me," Jerome told him.

"Nerds come in all shapes and sizes. If you ever go to a Con, you'll see every kind of nerd under the sun."

"You've been to a Con?" Jerome said eagerly.

"Sure, a couple of times. Southern California is a mecca for Cons. I think my dad was happy to pay for me to go, because at least it wasn't a music festival." 

"I wish I could go to one," Jerome remarked wistfully. "But my parents can't afford to send me."

"You should get to one when you can afford it, they're great fun. And a great place to get laid, too," he added casually.

Jerome's jaw dropped. "Y-You had SEX at a CON?!" he yelped in disbelief.

Tyler chuckled. "Sure. I've gotten laid at Cons plenty of times. Nothing like a bunch of desperate, horny geeks. It's like a smorgasbord. I can take my pick."

Jerome could see how that could be. Geeks would line up to get into bed with someone like Tyler, especially female geeks. Because male geeks tended to look more like him than like a rock star. Girls would fall on their knees and thank the heavens if Tyler made a pass at them. "You could do pretty well at a Con if you wanted to, Jer," Tyler commented. "Have you ever had sex with anyone yet?"

"No," he admitted miserably, turning red in embarrassment. 

Tyler touched him on the shoulder comfortingly, making him jump. "Hey, don't sweat it, Jer. Your time will come."

"Sure," he replied glumly. He pretty much doubted it, though. He was skinny and gangly, and he had a mop of gingery hair atop a bony face, and a pair of thick-framed glasses that half-obscured his weird, yellowish eyes. He couldn't imagine that gay guys would throw themselves at him.

"I'm telling you, it's guaranteed that you'll get laid at a Con," Tyler assured him as they crossed the street together. Even the ugliest nerd has a chance, let alone a guy like you who isn't bad-looking."

Jerome blinked. Tyler thought he wasn't bad looking?! His face felt like it was going to burst with heat. He looked away hurriedly so that Tyler wouldn't see him turning the color of a cherry tomato. The color clashed horribly with his hair, and the other boy might wonder why he was blushing so furiously. 

"It's kind of pretty here," Tyler mused. "So green. I'm not going to miss the desert, that's for sure."

"Just wait until winter starts," Jerome told him, having recovered from his blush finally. "Everything is white, and it's really cold. You might start to miss the desert then, or at least how warm it is, anyway."

"That's true. I don't much like the cold. Guess I'll have to buy a parka and pretend I'm an Eskimo."

"Or stay indoors as much as possible where it's warm," Jerome replied. "It's pretty nice to sit in front of a fire when it's freezing outside and the blizzard going on. The only thing that sucks is when the internet goes down or the power goes out because of all the snow."

"You're not really making me look forward to winter, you know, Jer," Tyler remarked dryly. 

"Sorry," he said apologetically.

"It's okay. Every place has its drawbacks. Cali could get so hot you just wanted to strip your skin off, and we had fires and mudslides and earthquakes. I won't miss any of that, either, even when I'm freezing my ass off."

Jerome shivered. "I've only been in one earthquake, and it wasn't too bad," he said. "But it was still really scary. I can't imagine having them all the time."

"You get used to it, but you never stop being scared entirely," Tyler replied. 

They walked up the street together past a row of businesses. Tyler paused to look into the window of a small clothing store. "Whoa, the 80's never died here, did they?" he asked in amusement, looking at the selection of garments for sale behind the glass. 

"We don't have mullets anymore," Jerome said defensively, "Well, mostly," he added truthfully.

Tyler threw back his head and laughed. "That's good to know," he chortled, his dark eyes gleaming with humor. 

Jerome shrugged. Tyler slugged him on the shoulder, which made him jump and his breath catch at the same time. "Come on, Jer, let's go get something to drink," he said in amusement. 

In the diner, they got a booth together at the back. Tyler settled back against the warn leather and glanced around. "It really does have a soda fountain," he said incredulously. "I thought you were kidding."

"Why would I do that?" Jerome asked in perplexity. 

Tyler shrugged. "I dunno. I thought you were making a joke, because soda fountains went out with the 50's."

"Well, the sodas are really good," Jerome said. "So I'm glad that they still have the fountain."

"Okay. We'll get a couple, and maybe some food. You hungry?"

He was. Seeing his face, Tyler smiled slightly. "We'll eat, my treat. Are the burgers any good?"

"Pretty good. Better than McDonald's," Jerome told him. 

"Cool. I think I'll get a cheeseburger and some onion rings. They do have onion rings, don't they?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, What are you going to get, Jer?"

Before he could answer, a pretty waitress came up to their table and smiled at both of them. "Hey, Jerome," she said. 

"Hi, Jenna."

"Who's this?" she asked, looking at Tyler.

"This is Tyler Radisson. He just started at my school today." Jerome explained to her.

"Oh. Well, welcome, Tyler. Do either of you boys want menus?"

"I don't. I want a cheeseburger with a side order of onion rings, and lots of pickles. Jer?"

"I'll have my usual, Jenna," Jerome told the waitress.

"A plain hamburger with only mustard? And an order of fries?" she asked, jotting their orders onto her pad.

"Right," he said. 

"Oh, and we'd like two sodas. What flavors do you have?" Tyler asked her.

Jenna listed them off, and Jerome ordered a chocolate soda, while Tyler went for a cream soda. When she left the table to fill their orders, Tyler looked at him. "A plain hamburger with only mustard?" he said, lifting his brows a little. 

Jerome shrugged a bit, uncomfortably. "Ever since I was a little kid I've always separated my food," he explained. "As I got older, it turned into liking it as plain as possible. I can't help it."

"Well, okay. I've heard of weirder stuff. Say, that waitress is kind of cute, don't you think?" his dark-brown eyes were steady and keen on Jerome's face as he said this. 

Jerome blinked, then his fingers started to nervously fold a napkin into a random shape. "I guess so," he said.

"You guess so? Come on, Jer. You're a teenage boy. Don't you ogle every pretty girl you come in contact with?"

Jerome swallowed thickly. "Sure," he husked, knowing that he sounded entirely unconvincing. 

Tyler cocked his head to the side. What he said next stunned Jerome, freezing him in his seat. "You don't like girls, do you, Jer?" he asked softly. 

Oh, God! Tyler knew! Jerome cringed, saying nothing, his face even paler than usual as he waited for the hammer to fall. Tyler nodded his head. "I knew it. I KNEW you were checking me out in class earlier," he said in satisfaction.

Jerome's mouth opened, even as his brows knit. Tyler didn't sound angry. What was happening here? Tyler laughed at his pole-axed expression. "Jer, Jer, don't look so scared," he said soothingly. "I'm not going to do anything to you. I'm not mad that you checked me out. I'm actually pretty flattered, to tell you the truth."

Now completely stunned, Jerome yelped: "You ARE?!"

Tyler nodded. "Mmm, hmm. I like it when people check me out. Guys, girls, it doesn't matter which. Either works for me."

Weakly Jerome said: "You're not...mad?"

"Nah. How could I be? You were looking at me like a starving man would look at a banquet. I guess I'm pretty vain, because I like that kind of attention," Tyler said with a self-deprecating smile. 

"Oh," Jerome said. "Then you're not upset that I'm...gay?"

"Hell, no. Of course not. Cali is full of gays. If I got mad every time a guy checked me out there, I'd have had to be perpetually pissed. And I'm too laid back to bother. Besides, I sort of don't have the right to be mad, anyway."

"What do you mean?" Jerome asked.

Just then, Jenna came to their table with their sodas, so they had to wait while she set them down and departed again. Tyler took a sip of his, as an impatient Jerome waited to find out what he'd meant by that statement. At last Tyler said in a leisurely way: "I've had sex with girls, Jer, but I've also had sex with a couple of guys before this."

Shocked, he gaped at Tyler. He made some spluttering noises, and Tyler said in amusement: "Sex feels good, Jer, no matter who you're doing it with. If a guy came onto me, and I thought he was hot, I'd do him. Same with a girl. Guess I'm kind of a slut that way," he added, still sounding amused. "I suppose that makes me bisexual, though I like to think of it as being an equal opportunity sex fiend."

Jerome felt dazed. Tyler's casual way of speaking about sex was like nothing he'd ever encountered before this. The good people of Ohio tended to be a LOT more uptight about sex and sexual matters. "I-I haven't told anybody else yet," he confessed shyly. "About...me being gay, that is. I've been scared to."

"I get that. People here in the Heartland don't seem to be that accepting of 'alternative lifestyles'. But that's okay - I know now, and you can always talk to me about it whenever you want. I'll always listen."

He felt gratitude surge through him. "Thanks, Ty," he said, smiling. 

Tyler studied his face. "You should smile more often, Jer," he mused. "You have a great smile. Guys will be suckers for that smile."


	3. Hey, Jealousy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jerome gets jealous of other students hanging around with Tyler

Okay, he was going for the world's record for the most blushing in the space of a few hours. He ducked his head to hide it. Jenna brought their food to the table just then, and he was glad to be able to concentrate on it rather than on Tyler. He dolloped ketchup on the edge of his plate for the fries, which smelled great. His stomach was making happy rumbling noises inside of him in anticipation. 

Tyler was piling onion rings on top of his burger, then he smushed the top bun back down on it. Catching his questioning glance, Tyler shrugged. "Onion rings taste great on top of a burger," he said. "You should try it sometimes. Although you like your food really simple, so you might not like it," he finished, then took a big bite of his burger and chewed happily.

Jerome took a bite of his own burger, which tasted great with just the smear of mustard on it. He could really taste the meat with nothing in the way. He finished chewing the bite of burger before he ate a fry with ketchup on the end. The he finished the fry before he took another bite of the burger. He was a neat and fastidious eater; he always had been. 

Tyler, on the other hand, ate noisily and with abandon, a smear of ketchup and mustard appearing beside his lower lip on the left side. Jerome found himself staring at that smear, and in his imagination he licked it off of Tyler's skin. He shuddered helplessly, aware of the major boner he had going on right now. He almost choked on his bite of burger, before he swallowed it thickly. Oh, man, a teenage boy's raging hormones were pretty hard to handle, especially when you weren't getting any! And having a wet dream sitting across from him wasn't helping any, either. 

Fortunately for him, Tyler turned the conversation to things close to a geek's heart just then. As they ate, they talked about science fiction and fantasy and computers and video games. Jerome enjoyed himself so much that he almost forgot about his attraction to Tyler. Almost. 

 

When they finally left the diner over an hour later, Tyler turned to him with a smile. "Thanks for hanging out with me, Jer," he said. "But I should get home. Still some unpacking left to do. I'll see you in school tomorrow, okay?"

"Yeah, definitely," Jerome agreed. 

Tyler grinned and strolled away down the street, pulling a cell phone from his jacket pocket as he went. He was probably calling his dad or somebody to give him a ride home. Jerome shouldered his backpack and started for home himself, knowing he had homework to do. And he had something else to do before he started on his homework, because he had to be able to concentrate...He was going to 'spend some quality time with himself' in his bathroom. And he knew he'd be thinking of Tyler the whole time...

 

Jerome stood in the Biology Lab, sulking and trying not to show it. At a table nearby, a small crowd of students had gathered. They were all either listening to, or talking to, Tyler. The geeks were coming to the realization that this ultra-cool kid was very smart, and fun to talk to. They'd never had someone like Tyler in their midst before. He didn't sneer at or look down on them, or pretend that they didn't exist. So, of course he was extremely popular, which was what was annoying Jerome. Because he couldn't even get near Tyler anymore! He was totally jealous of anybody else who got near Tyler, though he knew he didn't have the right to be. It wasn't like they were even friends, let alone anything else. But while his head told him that, other parts of him couldn't help this rampant, illogical, seething jealousy. 

Jerome turned away and transferred his scowl onto his Biology project, dissecting a fetal pig. While he wasn't squeamish, he also felt rather sorry for the poor piglet. He picked up his scalpel, preparing to cut into the small body lying in the dissecting tray. He had to concentrate on his schoolwork, anyway; he couldn't afford to let his grades slip just because he was mooning over an unattainable guy in his class.   
He made some neat, careful cuts, following the diagram chart on the hand-out. He heard laughter nearby, and his shoulders stiffened. But he refused to look up. Let the others crowd around Tyler and neglect their work; he was going to concentrate. Even if his lab partner was over in that small crowd, it didn't matter. He could do it by himself. 

"Whoa, that looks good, Jer," a voice remarked over his shoulder, making him jump and drop the scalpel.

Tyler's hand slapped his shoulder. "Sorry about that," he said cheerfully. "But you're really good at dissection. If my father saw that, he'd try to recruit you into going to medical school to be a surgeon."

He felt a flush of warmth and happiness at this praise. "Thanks," he said.   
"I should get back to my own pig. It's just hard - cutting into that little guy. They're kind of cute, aren't they?"

Jerome had to agree. "But it's dead, so we might as well get some use out of it."  
"You're right. Well, I'm going back to my table. See you in a bit," Tyler strolled away, leaving Jerome staring after him. 

He felt better as he turned back to his pig. Tyler had specifically come over to talk to him, and he'd praised Jerome's dissection skills! His jealousy laid down with a grumble, and he found himself smiling a little as he went back to his dissection. 

In their last class of the day together, Tyler leaned over and said softly to him: "Hey, Jer, wanna go hang out with me again after school?" he hesitated, because while he'd like nothing better he had to go to a Chemistry Club meeting. 

Seeing the indecision in his face, Tyler made a motion with his hand. "It's okay," he mouthed. "We can do it another time."

"No!" Jerome cried, then lowering his voice when the teacher looked their way disapprovingly. "I'll hang out with you," he added when the teacher had looked away again.

"Cool. Meet me out front after the last bell," Tyler hissed, before he turned back to his dissection.

Jerome's mind kept wandering after that, and he had real trouble concentrating. All he could think about was getting to hang out with Tyler again. He was nervous and excited and annoyed with himself for being that way. Tyler wasn't the least bit interested in him, after all. They were just friends. Or something. But nothing more. Still, he'd take anything that he could get. Anything at all...

Jerome emerged from the school, and his heart began to pound in his chest when he saw Tyler leaning casually against a concrete planter, waiting for him. "Hi," he said nervously.

"Hey, Jer. Ready to go?" Tyler asked, straightening up.

"Yeah. I'm ready," Jerome replied happily, looking forward to being alone with Tyler.

But just then, a small group of nerds came out of the school and saw them. "Ty! Hey, Ty!" the called, coming over. 

"Hey, guys!" Tyler replied cheerfully.

"Did you want to do something? Like go to the video arcade?" one of the nerds asked eagerly. 

Jerome felt his heart sink into his stomach as Tyler replied: "Actually, Jer and I were going to the diner. Anybody else want to come with us?"

There was an eager chorus of 'yes! I do!' from all sides. Jerome felt his heart sink. He’d been looking forward to spending time alone with Tyler, but now he’d just be one of the crowd. Miserably he shouldered his backpack, wishing that he’d just gone to Chess Club after all. 

Jerome slumped in a booth, trying to shut out the happy chatter all around him. The small crowd of geeks and nerds had taken over four booths at the diner, and Jerome wasn’t even sitting at the same one as Tyler. His new friend was holding court at a crowded booth behind him, talking and laughing and having a great time. He felt depression slide through him as he stared at the almost untouched hamburger on the plate in front of him. Why had he even come? Maybe he should just leave, go home and get some studying in. 

He sullenly slid a french fry through the dollop of ketchup on his plate, knowing he was pouting and not caring. How many times did a geeky nerd like him get to hang out with a hot guy like Tyler? It would probably never happen again. God, his life sucked. He dropped the fry morosely, and decided that he was definitely going home. He'd hole up in his room and jerk off to some internet porn. 

He got to his feet, picking up his backpack. He thought about saying goodbye to Tyler, but frankly the other boy seemed so busy with his newfound friends that Jerome didn't want to bother him. He walked up to the cashier, paying for his mostly uneaten meal. Then he walked out the door, standing on the sidewalk and taking in a half-dozen deep breaths. Shouldering his backpack, he started on his walk home.

"Hey, Jer!" A familiar voice called behind him, and he whirled around in astonishment to see Tyler running lithely after him down the sidewalk. He gaped at the other boy as 

Tyler frowned at him. "Why'd you leave without saying anything, Jer? If I hadn't seen you go out the door, I never would have known that you'd gone!"

His shoulders hunched defensively. "I'm sorry, but I didn't want to disturb you," he said, his eyes dropping to the sidewalk. "You were so busy talking to everybody else that..."

Silence. Then Tyler said softly: "Were you jealous, Jer? Jealous of me hanging out with those other guys?"

His eyes flew up to Tyler's face, seeing the dark-brown orbs studying him closely. He felt heat gather in his face. "I..." he began helplessly. 

Tyler read his answer in his face. "You were jealous," he said. 

Jerome squirmed. "I'm sorry," he whispered. "I shouldn't..."

Tyler waved a hand at him. "Don't worry. I understand, Jer. And I shouldn't have ignored you, anyway, back at the diner. You were my first friend in town. I should have made sure you had a seat right next to me at the table."

Jerome didn't know what to say to this. Tyler smiled crookedly. "How about we go and hang out at your house, Jer? I'd like to see your room," he said teasingly.

Oh, lord, now his face was definitely flaming! "Y-You want to see my room?" he stuttered in disbelief.

Tyler nodded. "Yeah, I do. I'd bet its full of action figures and all sorts of cool geeky stuff."

Jerome squirmed. Seeing his face, Tyler grinned and touched his shoulder. "Let's go, Jer," he said.

 

Jerome led the way to his house, not saying much. Tyler was doing most of the talking, easily speaking about a variety of subjects. But he was still feeling too shy to participate in the conversation much, especially since Tyler had identified the fact that he'd been jealous back at the diner. His face turned red every time he thought about that fact. It made him seem petty, to be jealous of the fact that Tyler was making other friends besides him. 

His house was a single-story craftsman-style structure, with white siding and red trim. Tyler eyed the neat structure approvingly. "Do you mow the lawn?" he asked, looking at the trimmed green grass that was only starting to turn a little brown as fall progressed.

"Yeah. Sometimes my brother Stevie does it," Jerome replied as they went down the sidewalk toward the wide front porch together. "But it's mostly me."

"I've never had to mow the lawn. When I lived in L.A., our lawn was nothing but rocks and cactus."

Jerome couldn’t imagine that. He pulled out his key to the front door, and Tyler waited patiently while he opened the it. He led the way into the front hall, pausing as he turned to Tyler. "My bedroom's down there," he said, pointing down the hallway that led the length of the house.

"Lead on, MacDuff. I can't wait to see it," Tyler said with a grin.

Jerome felt nervous all over again as he led the way to the door of his room. He hesitated at the door, then finally opened it. He stepped inside of his bedroom, with Tyler at his heels. He stopped in his tracks, feeling sweat breaking out on his brow, as Tyler stood in the doorway looking around casually.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tyler and Jerome watch a video together

Jerome shyly hung back as Tyler stood in the doorway looking around is room. He knew what the other boy was seeing - a typical nerd den. Posters for superhero and sci fi movies covered the walls, along with a framed picture of a fractal. Shelves to one side held his collection of action figures, as well as models that he’d built from kits. There was a Millennium Falcon, a tie-fighter, an Enterprise shuttlecraft, a Death Star, etc. A bookshelf stuffed full of books sat near his small desk, on which was his PC. A TV sat on a chest against the far wall at the foot of his bed, and was hooked up to not one but two different gaming systems. He had all the bells and whistles that a successful nerd needed, and he was afraid that Tyler would think it was dumb.

Tyler pursed his lips together and whistled. “It’s just like I imagined,” he remarked, turning to Jerome. “It’s totally you, Jer.”

He wondered if this was a compliment. Tyler grinned at him, showing off white teeth. “Can I sit on your bed?” he asked, waving a hand at it. “You don’t seem to have any chairs.”

“Uh, yeah, sure,” Jerome blurted.

Tyler strolled over and sank down on his navy bedspread, lounging there like a panther. He looked even more like a living wet dream like that, and funny squiggles started up in the pit of Jerome’s stomach. Tyler’s eyes went to the desk, and considered the PC. “So, Jer,” he began, lacing his fingers across his lean stomach casually. “Got any good gay porn on that thing?”

His face flamed bright red at this insouciant question. Tyler grinned again, slyly, as Jerome’s blush spread wildly over his face. “I’ll take that as a yes,” he commented with a wicked gleam in his eyes. “Can we watch some of it?”

Jerome’s jaw hit the floor. Tyler wanted to watch…No, way! Seeing his bug-eyed expression of shock, Tyler smirked. “I like good porn,” he purred. “Gay, straight, bi, whatever. And I can’t wait to see what kind of porn that you watch. I’ll bet it’s kinky.”

God, he was blushing again. Jerome wanted to sink through the floor and disappear. He struggled to speak at all. “W-We’d have to lock the door and turn the sound down,” he began, clearing his throat. “My brother could come home at any time, and he never knocks before barging into my room.”

“Typical,” Tyler commented. “Okay, lock the door, then. Let’s get the show on the road, Jer.”

He turned on trembling legs and locked his bedroom door. His brother Ryan would only be a bit disgruntled that his door was locked; he locked it all the time to keep his nosy brother out of his sanctum, because even when he was only studying or doing homework his brother would come in and bug the hell out of him, driving him nuts. Or he’d play Jerome’s video games, and would turn up the sound so loudly it threatened to puncture his eardrums. Not to mention the cursing from Ryan when his game wasn’t going well. He almost always locked his bedroom door when he was home now, so Ryan was used to it.

He turned back and glanced at Tyler, still lounging on his bedspread. The other boy tilted his head a bit to the side, challengingly. He waited in silence as Jerome walked over to his desk and sat down. He turned on his computer and waited for a few moments while it booted up. He was so nervous that he was practically shaking. He couldn’t BELIEVE that he was going to show Tyler his porn! 

The screen came up. He moved the mouse over to his personal files, clicking on the folder marked ‘Geometry Homework’. He’d deliberately put that name on it so his snoopy brother wouldn’t be tempted to click on it. He knew that Ryan would sneak into his room when he wasn’t home, and often used his computer. But if he thought the folder only contained something boring like saved geometry homework, he wouldn’t bother to check it out. Ryan thought geometry was ultra boring. 

The file opened, revealing various kinds of video files. He hesitated, then finally clicked on one of his favorites. His breathing picked up, faltering in his chest. Tyler got up off the bed and came over to stand behind him. It made Jerome want to squirm in his chair, this nearness to his living fantasy. And now the video file was opening, and the cheesy credits were rolling. He sat frozen in his chair, his eyes riveted on the screen, too embarrassed and simultaneously turned on to even look at Tyler. 

The opening scene of the video was one of his favorites of all time, for a reason. One of the guys looked a lot like Tyler! Oh, his face wasn’t identical or anything - but he had the same leanly-muscled body, the same air of confidence, and the same graceful, animal-like way of moving that Tyler did. His partner was a bigger man with short brown hair, and the Tyler-like guy seduced this man into having sex with him in a storeroom at ‘work’. He took charge, and was totally aggressive. He kissed the brown-haired man like he wanted to devour him. Jerome shuddered, wishing he could close his eyes. Having this sexy guy on-screen, along with Tyler watching this scene right next to him, was a little too much for his raging seventeen-year-old hormones to take. He felt like his head might explode. 

The two men on the screen started to have hot, animalistic sex with one another in the storeroom. Jerome hurriedly turned the sound down(when he could get his limbs to move), horrified by the thought of his parents or brother hearing the sounds emanating from his bedroom. Bad enough that he was watching porn; one of them might notice that the moans and groans were both deep and male, or that the voices calling out things like: “Fuck me!” were clearly those of two men and not a man and a woman. Jerome knew his parents would only be somewhat disgusted if he watched straight porn(every teenage boy did things like that, after all), but he had no idea WHAT they’d do if they discovered him watching gay porn. And he didn’t want to find out, either. If he ever came out to them it would be years in the future when he wasn’t still living at home and had made his own way in the world.

He gasped, his body stiffening, when Tyler’s hand suddenly descended on his shoulder. The other boy leaned down a little and said softly in his ear: “Like this one, don’t you, Jer? Wish that were you in that storeroom?”

His husky tone of voice made Jerome’s body throb and his head feel muzzy. He nodded a little, unable to speak, his eyes still riveted on the video. Tyler chuckled. “I don’t blame you. This is a hot scene. You’ve got good taste, Jer.”

He felt mingled pleasure and near-painful lust at Tyler’s words. The ‘near-painful’ part was coming from the boner trying to drill a hole through his pants. Usually he’d have had his dick in hand right now, and would have been beating his meat almost frantically as he watched this incredibly hot scene. But he couldn’t do that, not with Tyler standing right there. So he had to endure his extreme discomfort, and hope he wasn’t permanently damaged down there.

But, finally, a little whimper of discomfort escaped from between his teeth. He heard Tyler asked worriedly: “Are you okay, Jer?”

He hung his head and said nothing, because he couldn’t. He wanted out of his pants so badly! But then he gasped as his chair was pulled out from the desk, and his raging erection exposed for Tyler’s eyes to see. He felt shame engulf him, but Tyler only shook his head. ‘You should have told me, Jer,” he chided gently. “Unzip your pants.”

He froze, his eyes wide. Tyler grinned down at him, and went on: “Either you take ‘em off, Jer, or I will. You need relief.”

Oh, Dear God! He fumbled with his zipper with hands that were shaking so badly that he could barely get it down. But then blessed, wonderful relief, as the pressure at his crotch abated somewhat. But then he was even more astonished and shocked when Tyler commented: “Push down your underwear too, Jer. Let your flag fly free.”

His mouth opened and closed. Tyler winked at him. ‘You do it or I will, Jer,” he reminded Jerome.

In a daze, lost in disbelief, he sat forward and up a little so that he could slide his briefs down off of his cock. It sprang out, rigid and leaking, between his legs in a bush of gingery pubic hair. And Tyler was looking at it! His face turned crimson, and he had to fight not to put his hands over it to hide it from Tyler’s gaze. 

But then the most shocking thing of all happened. Tyler casually reached down and began to get himself out of his own jeans, while Jerome merely goggled at him. He pushed the jeans down, proving that he wasn’t wearing underwear! His dick was a thing of beauty, a little thick and blunt, with trimmed pubic hair surrounding a heavy set of balls. Jerome couldn’t take his eyes from it. He watched as Tyler spit into his hand and reached down to wrap his fingers around it. “Let’s jack off together, Jer,” he said aloud.

Jerome jumped, but as Tyler began to stroke himself he spit in his hand and tentatively reached down to take himself in hand. He really couldn’t believe this was happening. He and Tyler were jacking off together to a porn video! But the feel of his hand on his penis was distracting his shocked thoughts, and he moaned lowly as his fingers began to stroke automatically. He had a lot of practice at this by now. 

His eyes turned back to the video, lest Tyler realize that Jerome was more interested in him then the people fucking on-screen. Just because they were jacking off together didn’t mean that Tyler was interested in him. Jerome knew that many boys had jacking off sessions together while watching porn videos; that it most likely meant nothing at all. Straight boys even did it together sometimes. But they kept their eyes on the video, not on their neighbors. So he stared rather blindly at the screen of his computer monitor, and tried hard not to concentrate on the fact that his living, breathing wet dream was masturbating not far away from him. 

He could feel himself rising toward his orgasm very quickly. The thought that Tyler was doing the same thing that he was right next to him was pushing Jerome toward the edge. He gritted his teeth over a loud moan, his head going back. His eyes opened, and he looked up at Tyler’s face. The other boy’s eyes were closed, and his mouth was slightly open. A soft gasp was torn from his lips, and Jerome knew that he was coming. The sight of it drove him to his own end. His hips came up off his chair as come slopped out over his hand in two long spurts. 

His head hung down as he panted for breath. He still couldn’t believe what had just happened. Tyler and he hadn’t both beaten off by watching a porn video together. In his bedroom! He didn’t want to open his eyes and find out it had all been a wonderful dream. But then a hand patted his shoulder, and they flew open to see Tyler leaning over him. “That was a good video, Jer,” Tyler told him with a smile. 

He didn’t know what to say to this. He stared silently up at Tyler, whose grin widened. Then, oh, then - Tyler took two steps forward until he was right beside Jerome’s computer chair. And he leaned down, twisting around so that his lips could cover Jerome’s. Right then, right there, a stunned Jerome Hayden received his very first kiss ever…and from Tyler Radisson!


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Friends with benefits, Tyler-style.

Jerome moaned helplessly into Tyler’s mouth, stunned into immobility by his first ever kiss with another guy. And what a guy! The blazingly hot Tyler, who’d just jacked off with him to a gay porno and was now kissing him senseless! He panted and whimpered as Tyler’s tongue thrust into his mouth, lazily curling over his own. 

But then it was over. Tyler lifted his mouth from Jerome’s, and stood smiling down at him. He reached out and lightly ran his fingers along Jerome’s cheek in an affectionate manner. “Thanks for showing me that video, Jer,” he said. “It was really hot.”

Disappointment washed through him as he realized that the kiss had been nothing more than Tyler’s way of saying thanks for the porn. He managed to croak: “You’re welcome,” somehow hiding his disappointment from the other boy. He didn’t want Tyler to think that he was a loser who couldn’t handle a simple kiss. 

“Anyway, I have to get going. If I’m not home by a certain time, my dad freaks out. He starts thinking that I’m off buying drugs or having anonymous sex with some guy in an alley. Parents,” he drawled in good-natured scorn.

“Yeah,” Jerome said. “Umm…I’ll see you tomorrow at school?”

“Of course. See ya then, Jer. Thanks for showing me your room,” Tyler lifted a hand, then strolled out of his room in his usual lazily insouciant manner.

 

Jerome slumped down in his chair, staring vaguely at his computer screen. He couldn’t believe how this last half hour had gone. He’d gotten to jack off to a gay porn video with Tyler! Then Tyler had kissed him! He’d thought…no, it didn’t matter what he thought. Tyler was from California. Probably they did things differently there. Kissing was probably much more causal. He had to stop getting his hopes up over nothing. At least he and Tyler would still be friends. And who knew? Maybe Tyler would want a repeat of this whole thing sometime soon…he’d take what he could get. It certainly was more than he’d been getting at any other time in his life, that was for sure!

 

Tyler waved at Jerome the next morning as he entered his English class room. He lifted a hand back, before scurrying over to his desk and sitting down. He’d almost been late for class, because he’d gone to the bathroom and started daydreaming about what had happened in his room yesterday. He really had to pull himself together. He didn’t want to get detention if he could help it. 

“Morning, Jer,” Tyler whispered as he sat down.

“Morning,” he replied, pulling out his books as the teacher came to the front of the room to start the class. 

He tried to pay attention to what she was saying, but it wasn’t easy with Tyler sitting right next to him. All he could think about was the way that Tyler had looked with his own cock in his hand, the expression on his face when he’d come. It made Jerome get a boner, which also didn’t help his concentration any. He tried to take notes, but feared that they were decidedly incomplete when the bell rang. 

 

He shoved his books into his bag and rose to his feet. A hand touched his elbow, and he jumped as he looked over into Tyler’s face. “Wanna go do something after school again, Jer?” He asked.

“Uh, sure! What did you want to do?” Jerome babbled, trying to act casual. 

“Maybe we could go see a movie or something. I haven’t gone to one in forever. Or that’s what it feels like, anyway,” Tyler remarked with a grin.  
“Okay. Sure,” Jerome would have agreed to go to a cock fight with Tyler at this point, let alone something as innocent as a movie.

“Meet me out front after school. We’ll decide what we want to go see,” Tyler flipped a hand at him and strolled out of the room, leaving Jerome to pull himself together once again before departing for his next class.

 

Jerome saw Tyler leaning his ass against one of the concrete planters as he pushed through the door that afternoon. Tyler lifted a hand in greeting, smiling at Jerome. “Hey, Jer. It feels like I just saw you,” he teased, because they’d just gotten out of their last class of the day together, Trigonometry.

“Hey. I called up a list of the movies playing at our theater,” Jerome told him as he approached. He held up his cell phone. “There are only four; it’s not a big theater. So - do you want to see a rom com, an action movie, a war movie, or a superhero movie?”

“Wow, what choices!” Tyler said with a grin. “Here, let me see what they are and we’ll decide together.”

They huddled over Jerome’s phone, looking the movies over. They looked up each one at sites like IMDB and Rotten Tomatoes, to see what critics and other movie goers were saying about them. They finally decided on the war movie as the one that looked the most intriguing to them both. Jerome pocketed his phone. “We can walk to the theater, and get there in time for the four o’clock showing, “he told Tyler.

“Okay, but let’s swing by the diner and grab something to eat real quick. I’m starving!”

 

So they did just that, getting their burgers to go and eating them on the walk downtown to the only movie theater in town. Tyler threw the brown bag his burger had come in into the trash can next to the window where you bought tickets for the movies. “I’m going to get a big tub of popcorn,” he decided as he paid for the tickets, over Jerome’s futile objections, “So I hope you like popcorn, too, Jer!”

He didn’t really, but he’d make an effort for Tyler. He followed after as they walked into the lobby and got in line to buy the overpriced snacks that the theater was selling. Tyler not only bought two sodas and a large popcorn, he also shelled out for some candy to rot their teeth. He waved away Jerome’s unhappiness with him paying for everything. “My dad’s always giving me tons of spending money,” he told Jerome. “Way more than your parents give you, I’d bet. Most times I don’t know what to spend it all on, especially here in Podunk, U.S.A. They have a lot more stores in L.A.,” he added with a grin.

 

Jerome had to accept this, though it made him feel like a moocher to have Tyler pay for everything. They settled into their seats and sipped at their sodas as the lights began to dim and the screen lit up. The credits began to scroll across the screen, and Jerome watched them instead of Tyler. He didn’t want to be caught staring at his friend. He didn’t want Tyler to think that he was an obsessed stalker or something. Although that was what he was rapidly in danger of becoming, having such a hot friend who kissed him casually and jerked off with him to porn videos…

 

They watched the movie together, and both got pretty engrossed in it. But apparently Jerome was more engrossed than Tyler was, because he suddenly felt a hand casually come to rest on his knee about halfway through the movie. His breath caught and he froze in place, his eyes wide. Fingers glided over his knee, and his dick became hard so fast that it tried to drill a hole in his jeans. He wondered wildly what Tyler was doing, but he didn’t want to talk over the movie to find out…

Those caressing digits slid down his inner thigh, making him gasp and bite his lip. He NEEDED to say something! What was going on here? He glanced over at Tyler’s face, and only saw his profile. His friend was still watching the movie intently, even as his fingers made forays over Jerome’s jeans-clad leg. It was almost as though he wasn’t aware of what he was doing, but that couldn’t be true, could it? He didn’t know what to do!  
Oh, God. Tyler’s questing fingers were skimming dangerously near his crotch. Jerome whimpered, unable to move lest he do something that would make Tyler stop what he was doing.

Those fingers brushed closer, closer…then they came to rest on his raging dick, and Jerome groaned as they slid over the bulge of his trapped cock. This couldn’t be happening! But then Tyler leaned over in his chair, still watching the movie, and said softly: “Take it out, Jer.”

“T-Take what out?” he stuttered, not believing that Tyler was saying what he appeared to be saying.

Tyler chuckled, and tweaked at the mound under his fingers. “This, Jer. This. Take it out.”

Oh, man! He panted wildly as he hissed: “I can’t DO that! Not here!”

Tyler laughed, low and quiet. “Yes, you can. It’s dark, and there aren’t a lot of people in the theater. Nobody will see.”

He glanced wildly around, but Tyler was right. There were only a handful of people in the theater. Still… “I can’t,” he choked as those fingers stroked him outside of his jeans again.

“If you don’t take it out, Jer, I’ll make you come in your jeans,” Tyler said calmly. 

He gasped. “You can’t…” he whispered.

“Sure I can. It will be easy,” Tyler told him. His lips were curved into a smug smile.

Jerome groaned again, but his fingers fumbled with the snap and zipper of his jeans. He didn’t want to come in them; it would be a sticky mess that he’d have to try to hide form his mom. Tyler made an approving noise as he managed to work his diamond-hard cock free from his underwear. “That’s better,” he purred, and his fingers closed around Jerome’s penis and began to stroke it lazily.

“Oh, oh, oh,” he panted, putting his hand over his mouth to muffle any louder noises. 

Tyler’s fingers gripped him and pulled at the shaft. Jerome moaned behind his fingers, his hips lifting. “Do you like it when I touch you like this, Jer?” Tyler asked as he coaxed more pre-come from the tip of his penis with his thumb.

“Yesss,” he hissed, humping up into those fingers. 

“Good. I like touching you,” Tyler replied, much to his surprise. 

“You do?”

A snort. “If I didn’t, would I be jacking you off in as movie theater?” Tyler said in amusement.

“I guess not,” Jerome gasped, feeling himself being drawn quickly up to orgasm. This was just so good! And so shocking! 

“I’m thinking that maybe we could be ‘friends with benefits’, Jer” Tyler continued as he tweaked at the tip of Jerome’s cock to make him gasp. “Would you be okay with that?”

Would he?! Man, he’d never imagined that Tyler would want to EVER be anything more than just friends with him! The ‘benefits’ part was amazing   
And awesome. “Yeah,” he croaked, then cried out behind his hand as he began to spurt over Tyler’s caressing fingers.

Tyler looked satisfied as he lifted his fingers to his mouth to lick Jerome’s semen off of them like a happy cat. “Good,” he replied. “Really, really good.”


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jerome and Tyler discuss 'friends with benefits'

Jerome walked out of the movie theater on wobbly legs. Tyler was strolling along beside him, looking smug. Jerome couldn’t have said what happened in the movie they’d just watched together, not even if somebody had tortured him. He’d spent the rest of the movie after Tyler’s hand job and casual suggestion that they be ‘friends with benefits’ staring blankly at the screen, his mind far gone in La La Land. Tyler had had to nudge him when the movie ended, or he’d STILL have been sitting there right now. 

Tyler tossed the empty container of popcorn into the trash, along with his empty soda container. “Let’s beat feet, Jer,” he remarked. “I’m hungry. Wanna come over to my house and get something to eat?”

Did he ever! He’d never seen Tyler’s house so far. But… “I can’t. My Mom said I had to be home for dinner by six-thirty,” he said apologetically.

Tyler didn’t seem put out by this. He nudged Jerome good-naturedly with his elbow. “Lucky guy, having a mom who cooks for you,” he said. “Saves you from the hell of mac and cheese and Hot Pockets.”

“You should come eat dinner with us!” Jerome blurted out, feeling sorry for him. It must be weird not to have a mom to taker care of you.

Tyler shook his head. “I don’t wanna impose, Jer,” he replied. 

“You wouldn’t be! Actually, let me call Mom and ask her if you can come over for dinner,” Jerome said, pulling his cell phone out of his back pack.

Tyler shrugged, but said nothing else as he watched Jerome call home. His mom answered on the second ring. “Hey, Mom, it’s me. Can I bring a friend home with me to dinner? Tyler. You met him a few days ago?” he listened, then laughed in a cracked sort of way. “Yeah, Mom, the kid who looks like one of The Ramones. He can? Thanks, Mom!” he hung up, beaming. “She says you can come over.” he told Tyler.

Tyler shook his head. “One of The Ramones?!” he repeated incredulously.

“Hey, my parents are old. What did you expect? At least she doesn’t think you look like Marilyn Manson or something.”

Tyler shrugged. “That’s true. Though I do love me some Marilyn once in awhile. Sure, I guess I could come over for dinner. I haven’t had a home-cooked meal in like forever. Not since Dad fired our last housekeeper in L.A. He found out she was stealing stuff to pawn it. It was too bad, though - she was a great cook.”

“I…didn’t want to ask, but…” Jerome hesitated as they started down the sidewalk together. “What happened to…?”

“My Mom? I could tell you some tragic story of how she died horribly in a plane crash or something, but that wouldn’t be true. Last I heard, she was on husband Number 4 and plastic surgery Number 10. She’s never graced me with any half-siblings because she’s afraid that it’d ruin her figure even more than I did. Dad never remarried after her. He’s gotten wary. He’s had plenty of girlfriends, but none of them ever got to the ring stage. Since he picks the same sort of airhead bimbo over and over again, I’m just as glad he never got married again. Those chicks only ever pretended to like me when they thought they could get Dad to pony up a ring and a trip to the altar. A couple of them liked me a little too well,” he added with a grimace. “Tried to hit on me.”

“Ewww! On a teenager?!” Jerome cried in horror. 

“Yeah, well, a few of them were barely into their twenties themselves. My Dad’s always had a taste for them young. I’ve tried to tell him that young and stupid ain’t the way to go, but he never listens. Then he wonders why they cheat on him or use him or cling to him. He’s a good doctor, but my Dad isn’t that bright otherwise.”

Jerome didn’t know what to say to this remark. Fortunately, Tyler didn’t seem to need a reply. They walked in silence for a few moments, before he said hesitantly: “Ty?”

“Yeah?”

“About what happened…in the theater…”

Tyler grinned. He looked impish and a bit evil when he did that. “What about it?” He asked, fake-innocently.

“Did you really mean it? About us being…?”

“Friends with benefits?” Tyler replied bluntly. “Yeah, I meant that. I think you’re cute, Jer. And smart, and funny. And you like a ton of the same stuff that I do. I couldn’t do better here in Podunk, U.S.A. Also, I’m REALLY looking forward to ‘breaking you in’,” he added with a leer.

Jerome felt his face flush dark red. “B-Breaking me in?” He repeated, feeling a flash of heat wash through him.

Tyler nodded happily. “Mmm, hmmm. I’ve never had a virgin before. At least, not that I know of. It’ll be fun to show you everything. So you’ll be ready for the smorgasbord of guys who want to get with you in college,” he added with another grin at Jerome.

He felt let down by this statement for some reason. “Oh. Do you really think that anybody would want to get with me? At college, I mean?” he asked uncertainly.

Tyler nodded. “I’m sure of it. College is when all of the gay boys let loose, since they were too afraid to come out in high school. I’ve heard it gets pretty wild sometimes, depending on where you go. You’ll probably get laid every night, Jer,” he said, punching Jerome affectionately on the arm.

While that statement would have thrilled and excited him a few weeks ago, now it just depressed him a little. He wasn’t sure why. He should be over the moon that a sexy guy like Tyler was willing to get with him, and show him the ropes about gay sex so he’d be ready when he went off to college. While was he was excited about being with Tyler, the thought of those other boys at college just left him feeling sort of cold. Well, maybe he’d be more excited about it all once he and Tyler had done it. All the way. Maybe he was just feeling nervous about the whole thing, because frankly while his porn videos were wildly hot to watch, the thought of stuff like anal sex kind of made him worry a little. Would it hurt? Would it hurt so much that he’d be put off of it for good? He’s wanted to try practicing, with like cucumbers and stuff, but he was too afraid of getting caught. 

“Earth-to-Jer? You in there?” Tyler’s voice drew him out of his thoughts. He smiled sheepishly.

“Sorry. I was just thinking…”

“And pretty intensely too, to judge by your face. What about?”

He hesitated, then admitted what his thoughts had been about. “Ummm….sex…” he half-whispered, so that no one lese passing by could hear him. “You know…the butt stuff…?”

Tyler’s lips twitched and his eyes gleamed. After a moment, he began to chortle with laughter. “Oh, God, Jer, that’s hilarious!” he crowed, as Jerome flushed and made motions with his hands to try and make Tyler be more quiet. “The butt stuff! Jesus!” He went off into another howl of laughter, making Jerome start to feel annoyed. 

“It’s not funny!” He snapped at last, glaring at Tyler, who’d stopped in his tracks to double over with laughter. “Stop laughing at me!” He cried, feeling hurt.

Tyler straightened up at last, wiping at his eyes. “I’m not laughing at you, Jer,” he began. “Okay, maybe I am, but you’re just so cute! The butt stuff,” he repeated much more quietly, his eyes twinkling. “Come on, Jer, you can say it…anal. A-N-A-L. Say it with me.”

“Shhh!” He hissed, looking around. “Would you just be quiet? Somebody might hear us!”

“I’d say ‘let them hear us’, but I know you’re not out yet, Jer,” Tyler remarked, sobering a bit. “So, okay. I’ll be more quiet. What’s got you worried about the ‘butt stuff’, anyway?” he added in a soft voice, looking into Jerome’s face.

He flushed again. “I dunno. Like…will it hurt? Will I hate it? What if I do hate it? Will I never want to do it again? And will any guys want to have sex with me if I don’t?”

“All good questions,” Tyler remarked, taking him by surprise. “Let’s get going, and I’ll answer as many of them as I can.”

They started walking again. Tyler looked musingly at the ground. “Well, I won’t lie to you, Jer. Anal sex is going to hurt, especially at first. But it all depends on a lot of things how much it hurts - like how big the guy doing you is, how much lube you use, how much prep you’re given, that sort of thing. If you’re careful and go slow at first, it usually isn’t so bad that it’ll make you run screaming afterward. But I know that a lot of guys don’t like the feel of it, no matter how much they try, so they don’t ever do it again. If that happens to you, don’t worry about it. A lot of gay guys don’t even do anal. They stick with hand jobs and blow jobs and frotting and fingering. Tons of things besides having anal sex feel good, so it’s not really a big deal for most guys if they don’t get any ass. And if it is, you just have to find a different guy. But that’s neither here nor there until you try it and decide if you like it or not.”

“Have you ever…I mean…has somebody ever…?” Jerome asked hesitantly.

Tyler said bluntly: “You mean, has any guy ever done me, instead of the other way around? Sure. I let a couple do me just to see what it felt like.”

“Did you like it?” Jerome asked in fascination.

“It was okay. Not as good as doing somebody else, but not bad. I know some guys who love it, though. Makes ‘em shriek like they’re being killed when they have a cock in ‘em. But not from pain, not with the way they jizz all over everything when they come. We’ll have to try and see which one you’ll be, Jer, a guy who only thinks it’s okay or one who screams like a girl because he loves it so much,” and he flashed Jerome a wicked grin.

Jerome took in a trembling breath. He felt less nervous after this little talk, but he was still shaking a little at the thought of having sex with Tyler. Of course, part of that was pure excitement. The boy of his dreams, the walking wet dream, wanted to have sex with him. Him! It didn’t seem possible. He kept expecting to wake up at any moment and realize that it had all been a very good dream.


End file.
